After a one-year absence, the regional cross country meet will be returning home — to Boardman High School.

Because of heavy rainstorms last October, the course at Boardman after the Spartan Invitational damaged the course to the point that Northeast regional race director Jim Fox and Ohio High School Athletic Association officials made the decision to move the regional to GlenOak High School in Canton.

However, the races are coming home.

“We’re glad to have it back, but I can’t say enough nice things about the people at GlenOak — how well they cooperated in putting on a fine regional,” Fox told John Vargo of the Warren Tribune. “The help of all of our officials — the people who gave up a Saturday and came back all the way over there — really helped the meet run as well as could be expected making changes at the last minute. Teams qualified, individuals qualified. Overall, we were satisfied.

“We are glad, very glad, to get it back at Boardman.”

Fox also said there are some measures — preventative in nature — are being taken to readjust the course and make it as weatherproof as possible.

“There’s some additional drainage they’re working on and some re-adjustment of some of the areas of the course that got the most muddy. We’re making some adjustments there to avoid those areas if at all possible,” Fox told Vargo. “They’ve already been out this spring with the rollers to roll the course. And, of course, the grass seed we planted last year is coming up very, very well.

“Overall, I think the things we did last year to get the course ready and what they’re doing right now should make it a lot better for this year.”



On second thought...

Staying in the Mahoning Valley, turns out the letters of departure from the All-American Conference by four league members was much ado about nothing.

A few weeks ago, Hubbard, Lakeview, Liberty and Niles — members of the AAC White Division — submitted letters stating it was the collective’s intention to withdraw from the three-tiered conference after the 2009 spring sports season was concluded. White Division members Salem and Struthers did not submit letters.

Hearing that news certainly got the attention of area schools Conneaut, Edgewood and Jefferson, which will be fending for themselves in the immediate future with the imminent demolition of the storied Northeastern Conference.

However, Hubbard, Lakeview, Liberty and Niles recently rescinded those letters of intended departure from the AAC.

AAC Commissioner Clem Zumpella told the



Tribune he was relieved whatever issues those four schools had have been resolved.

“Definitely,” Zumpella responded to the newspaper when asked if he was relieved to be moving on. “We were sort of in limbo because we couldn’t schedule for 2010. We do scheduling in two-year blocks and we couldn’t go any further.”

Zumpella said the AAC will continue as a three-tiered league, though schools could be shifted from one division to another in a few years, depending on enrollment fluctuations.

“In a few years we will look at it again and roll up our sleeves and take a look at it,” he said.



Well done!

Area softball fans will recognize the name Bayle Boggs.

The LaBrae High School multisport standout was a member of the Ohio Jaguars last summer, who joined several area stars in qualifying for the USA-ASA 18-and-under Nationals last summer in Moline, Ill., making it that far for the second consecutive summer.

The squad was managed by Scott Francis and coached by Jay McMellen and George Dragon.

Playing nearly 50 games against some of the best competition in the country, Bayle and her teammates posted a 30-17 mark last summer.

Well, Bayle’s mom, Amy, sent word that Bayle has received an appointment to attend the United States Military Academy at West Point. She has accepted and will begin “Beast Barracks” on June 29.



McCormack is the sports editor of the Star Beacon. Reach him at donmac@suite224.net.